Off to meet the Monk who sold his Ferrari

I’ve booked and I’m so excited. I am attending ‘The Remarkable Entrepreneur’, a 2,5 day super conference presented by Robin Sharma. One of Robin’s books ‘Discovery your Destiny with the Monk who sold his Ferrari’ has been a real driving force behind what I’m doing now. The content really got me going and supported me to make the changes I needed to make; free myself from the corporate world and life my own dream. This book was the first of many I read and can highly recommend his books, they are metal movers. It’s a preferred gift for those friends who hit a crossroad with more questions than answers.

The content and the timing for the conference is just perfect. My right hemispheric creative brain has been running overtime. Continuously spitting out new ideas, thoughts and spin offs. I tend to scribble them in a special booklet, now filled with sketches, one liners, inspiring quotes, mind maps and mini business plans. I don’t think attending this conference is going to create law & order but will certainly drive things forward. Plus the summer is a down time for me and I’ll be spending most of it in Europe – time and place to come back with a cohesive plan.

Having a great idea on paper is useless, unless it gets executed. Driving ideas through execution requires balls and determination. Time to get my act together.

Flight is booked and prepping as much as I can. Leaving in 4 weeks.

Wk.

Mystery & Industry in the Kingdom

The Magical Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; a kingdom shrouded in mystery, a secret from the outside world. As a kid I lived in Saudi, near Damman on the East Coast. From what I can recollect as a nine year old, we existed in a bubble where living in a compound, being chauffeur driven to school and spending hours splashing in the pool whilst the grown ups tended to their illegally brewed wine was the norm. Life was great!

Years later, during my days as a corporate employee, trips to Saudi featured regularly so recently, it was a pleasure to return, this time wearing a different hat. The purpose of my visit was an assignment from branding agency, S+G. I was to travel with Art Director, Rhode to shoot am image library for a power & desalination plant in Jeddah.

Beautiful artistic shots of an industrial site? A challenge of gigantic proportions for which I justifiably had concerns; the harsh reality of arriving on site can be a stark contrast to the images conjured on a moodboard. Dust covered concrete slabs generate little colour but thankfully, my expectations were realistic thanks to our local fixer, Abullah, making reference to the ‘very ugly site’ on collecting us at the airport!

Fast forward and a shooting plan was fast put together. The place indeed had potential and what followed were several very long days; 3am departures from the hotel to begin shooting at sunrise ended 14 hours later with some rest and respite before repeating the following day. When the light and weather are working, you take advantage. Sleep can wait.

The building of these plants is fascinating. I’m not an engineer nor do I have the desire to understand how it all works but I do value the brainpower that goes into building such complex spaghetti of pipes, wires, workflow and metal.

Abdullah proved to be a fantastic asset, sorting out permits, arranging models and clothing and driving us around safely. Every morning at 3am he was waiting downstairs. Thank you Abdullah! Indeed the shoot, as a whole, was a dream, very enjoyable and made all the more rewarding when the client was happy with the results. One, I hope, to be repeated.

Cheers

Wk.

Nike Running Club

There’s a new home for running in Dubai. NRC short for Nike Running Club is a base for everyone who likes running with others. Doesn’t matter what level, the Nike coaches will look after you. Check out their facebook page http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=94027383565

I just spend a Friday morning session with them at Safa Park, a 7am start. Honestly I liked it, a good social bunch and despite their level everyone got stretched to work out as hard as they wanted (and a little harder). Coach Tom and his crew kept it varied with an important warm up and cool down at the end.

Shoot was very much reportage style, real people running in their own world. No rehearsals, no go back and do it again. Just run and I’ll work along side, predict movements and capture as it happens. It matched the brief – delivery of images people connect with.

Wk.

Personal Work – Musicians with passion

Second part of the Fridge project was a portfolio shoot with their new musicians. Live music whilst shooting, a bonus. Each artist has his or her own personality, the image needs to reflect their character. Shelley has a great feel to how her musicians differentiate and what mood works for them. My aim was to delivery something different every time. If one band was shot on white, the other group needed something different. My choice being my own art director in the way.

I just love working with professional artists, they are so passionate in what they do, playing from their soul. Giving their 100%. And once they get in their own world they are the easiest people to work with. That’s my thinking anyway. Just play, do your thing and we’ll place the lights around you. Might direct you a little but it’s your show. Nothing posed, nothing frozen, nothing staged. Free flowing – my style of shooting.

Wk.

1 year on, time flies

Here’s the number ONE that keeps us entertained, his first birthday coming up. One year, time flies so fast…

Wk.

Personal Work – Red Dress

I’m excited the share the following images from my latest personal project. In collaboration with The Fridge Dubai we’ve been working on a set of daring images. I’ve had this creative idea for a long time, which involved a convertible, standing model, wind and lots of fabric creating a sense of motion. So when the team at The Fridge had this gorgeous five meter red dress it all fell into place. Karin at Audi Middle East kindly made their new R8 Spider available. Our model Graciela was fantastic to work with, really talented in both modeling and performance as she also doubles as belly dancer and silk acrobat.

I brought in a Hasselblad H4D-50 and what a great machine to work with. Handles intuitive. The amount of detail is mind boggling, so crisp and revealing. The big file sizes slow the workflow down a bit and the batteries don’t last very long but the quality it produces definitely makes up for it.

The days working with the team have been brilliant, true creative colaboration. I’ve been really busy lately predominantly with corporate work, that this shoot was so refreshing with lots of new content that I can’t wait to add to my portfolio.

Wk.

Muscles at work

Check out this new sports club that has opened doors to muscle builders, weight looser and cardio addicts. A great club with an intimate atmosphere. It’s a chain, so possibly opening near you. www.sportsfit.net

Wk.

Dubai World Cup

My first Dubai World Cup experience goes back to 2001. Maybe it was already worlds richest race than but it’s certainly worlds biggest race now. They’ve stripped down the old Nad al Sheba Grand Stand and copy/pasted it about twenty times on top of each other. What a place, so iconic, so big. Obviously it has world class racing at its core and there is no shortage of alternative entertainment; A bubble lounge (your guess), concerts, frantic firework displays and corporate boxes.

Was happy with the all-access-pass getting to smell the sweat and feel the vibration. And running into the big boss HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. What a great pleasure.

A nice, dressed up, day out.

Wk.

Abu Dhabi Triathlon

Second year running, the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon is such a great race to shoot. The word Triathlon is slightly understated...3km swim, 200km bike and 20km run – making it event that should be listed as an Ironman. This year’s racing conditions were unreal, had friends racing and they all suffered badly; heavy winds, crazy high temperatures, exposed roads and boiling tarmac. It was a true though race.

Fortunate for me the temperature was manageable. It’s all a different world when you’re hanging out of a helicopter... Five hours airtime! We had our CID friend in the chopper with us again, more chilled this year! Last year his colleague wanted to check all my 5,000+ images.

Tried something different this year, shooting tight panning shots of cyclists from the moving chopper. Shutter at 1/30, my 400m lens with 1,4 extender shooting on a Canon 1d and handheld. A combination that is difficult to get right, bagged a few good ones so pleased with that.

A big bow to all the 675 athletes making it to the starting line, getting there is harder than race day. Eneko (first male) & Julie (first female) well done on taking home the victory medal, beating the other 525 great athletes who crossed the finish line after you.

Wk.

A 1.05 at RAK half marathon

I love running. So when the opportunity came to cover the media side of the Ras al Khaimah half marathon it was a yes please. Little did we know that Mary Keitany from Kenia would set a new world record on this fast course. A staggering 1.05.50, that’s roughly an average 20km/hr. As a sprinter that’s fast, and keeping that pace for 21km’s is very very fast. Mary, you are now a world record holder!!

The only price I will ever take home from a race is the raffle draw goody bag. My best half marathon time is 1.39.00 set during a race in Holland, nowhere near a podium finish. Which is comforting because it takes the pressure off. I love running. I love the joys of being outside. I always carry a pair of running shoes with me when traveling. Running allows me to explore new cities and countries ranging from the jungle in Laos to game reserves in South Africa. Along beaches on Australia’s east coast, a trailrun in the French Alps or the NY marathon. I’ll run any time of the day, regardless what the weather is doing. It helps me to clear my head, it brings answers, it’s a healthy drug.

So when seeing Mary and the 2,000 others crossing the finish line, it truly makes my day. So much energy. So much passion. And so much love. I hope the images I produced will end up on their wall. And in 20 years from now they have a story to share with their loved one…’That’s Granny doing a great race (and look at these funny clothes).’

Keep running

Wk.

Top Gun in Al Ain

Record visitor numbers, amazing aerobatics and crazy ground acts. As always it is a great gig at the Al Ain Aerobatic Show.

We had a rough start as all planes were grounded because of heavy sand storms. Thankfully the weather cleared in time for an action packed weekend. Always amazing to see these stunt guys doing their thing.

The show featured more than 25 aircrafts. Taking centre-stage was the multi-discipline FAI Desert Challenge, which saw six of the world’s best pilots flying in classic and free-style competition formats. They were joined by fighters from the UAE Air Force, aerobatic squadrons from the Turkish Air Force and Royal Saudi Air Force, Team Viper’s Hawker Hunter and many of the world’s best solo pilots.

Challenge for me was to deliver a stunning set of imagery out of just two days instead of the original planned four days. Nailed it!

Enjoy the summary of images.

Wk.

Inaugural Qatar Motorshow

Just back from a crazy 20 hour day. Flew in/out to Qatar for their inaugural Motorshow. A country with heeps of cash and a serious passion for cars…a dangerous mix to get the best horsepowers available on the market. Qatar government took a stake in the VW Porsche group last year making them serious car players. Audi launched 4 new models keeping me busy and entertained.

Only so much about a Motorshow can be about metal, bolts and torque. Real guys talk... But a carshow would be incomplete without stunning girls delivering the finishing touch.

WK.

2010 Re-Cap

The last three months of last year have been absolutely madly busy resulting a fantastic ‘10.

This isn’t the platform to run through a full year performance but I would like to open up the books here. I’m sharing my five key learnings and 10 best gigs.

2010 learners

- Think with the end in mind. Work on a strong composition in your head, visualize and work back from there. Doesn’t matter if it’s on site or at a pre production meetings but have a clear plan what the outcome needs to be and how to get max out of the shoot. Without a goal it’s difficult to score. If you leave it to good faith, you’re driven by the circumstances. I’ve had moments that on the way back home I was coming up with all sorts of ideas I could have implemented, if I would have put in some more brainwork before the shoot I could have nailed it on site. Think it all through before I start shooting.

- Can’t expect Amsterdam creatives to jump at my arrival. My wife and I lived in Amsterdam last summer with our new born doing the baby intro tour. Part of me justifying two months off was to introduce my photography work to the Dutch market, establish a name and hopefully to get future work. This proved to be tougher than I thought. For a number of reasons; getting face time with the right people at the 30 or so ad agencies I approached was very difficult – they work in crazily sealed offices, there are lots of other photographers bagging doors so I can only hope my brand message gets noticed, in the current economic climate brands don’t spend big cash on shoots as they used to, photo reps are struggling to find enough work for their current team – let alone expanding. My biggest outcome from all the valuable conversations is that Dubai is a good place to do what I love doing, the 9 years I’ve been here has allowed me to build a valuable network with good business. The task now is to keep my Dutch introduction active by shooting off occasional notes in the hope that a great shoot bounces back. A game of Ping-pong. A monologue translating into a dialogue.

- Secrete police knows more than you think. During the Abu Dhabi Triathlon earlier this year I was joined by a CID (or CIA equivalent) official in the helicopter. Guy appeared to speak little English and was dozing off half the time in the back of the aircraft. Pretty chilled I was thinking, showed a few pictures from the back of the camera and he appeared ok. Once landed he demanded to see all picture, all 5000+ I asked. Yes,…and I want to see them from that camera, pointing at the newly launched Mk4. He knew how to use it flawlessly, flicking through the images, changing CF cards and deleted a few images he didn’t like. I was stuned. His English fluent and if I would have asked him to change the custom white balance he would have managed as well. So don’t be fooled.

- Shooting food. Done quite a few food shoot this year and I find composition more of a challenge than lighting. I prefer to shoot using the modeling light so I can see how the light falls and tweek if needed. In terms of composition it all about making the food look attractive, turning the plate, lifting, cutting, dressing. All sorts of tricks. A big chunck of meat doesn’t always look attractive so crop in and show a nice detail.

- Team recruitment. With my business expanding I’ve come to a stage now that I need more than a great team of freelancers. Especially when I’m running full house too much stuff stays pending. So watch this space for future announcements. I could do with some permanent help.

Top assignments in 2010 – in any order:

- I took some corporate portraits of my mum last summer. How touching was that, a real personal shoot. She is used to standing in front of a large audience but in front of a camera is a different story.

- My time with the Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing team left some great memories. I love the romance element of sailing but this is taking it one massive step further. These guys are gearing up for eight months of torture – in the name of ‘love for the sport’. Guys, be safe and go fast.

- Spending the afternoon with Shakira was a useful learning curve for both. Behind as well as in front of the camera. Great portfolio content and I hope the image take her to the next level as well.

- My undercover access to Burj Khalifa early in the year was quite unique. Dressed like a construction worker, stripped down camera kit carried in an normal backpack and walking up endless stairs. What a vision. What a stunning tower.

- Can’t be absent on this list…the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge. Held in December and a great way to close the year. Tough like hell, little sleep, amazing athletic performances and again a fantastic book at the end.

- Always keen to explore new places. Baku is for sure a great city for an editorial assignment. The capital has a strong history with an authentic heart, going through a make over with a more glamorous face.

- Loved the 12,000 kids in Oman. What a noisy and what an energy.

- Got an insider look at what the Tour de France is all about. Pure athletic performance and it’s much tougher than what your see on TV. Thanks for the stories. Thanks for the thrill. Asking for more…

- Mountains, Desert and Wadi’s a great working place to shoot the latest Land Rover line-up. Loved every moment of it.

- A wheel chair doesn’t stop Alessandro and Marco from flying their aerobatics displays. Team We Fly does a kind of synchronized air dance with the three planes. Luckily for me I was allowed inside the cockpit with them!

Take out what works for you. Hope ’11 is as entertaining, fruitfull and busy as the last one.

Wk.

2011 kicks off with tennis

Had a gentle NY celebration knowing that I’ll be at the Zayed Sport City tennis stadium the following day. A full day with Junior tennis and the finals of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in the evening. A great tournament concept with six of the world’s top players competing in a single elimination series of matches. One winner, one prize pot of $250,000. Lot’s of tennis for young and old.

For all the others nursing their hangover – Happy New Year. Put on these running shoes and break some sweat.

Cheers

Wk.